The Pheasants Forever Rooster Road Trip held in northeast Nebraska this past Wednesday was a success! 12 pheasants and 8 quail were harvested in just one morning on public land in the Open Fields and Waters Program. I’d like to thank the Pheasants Forever crew, PF National Board Member Dick Bell, NGPC Commissioners Mick Jensen and Lynn Berggren, Scott Wessel, Josh Konouvsky and Mark Davis from the Omaha World-Herald for making this happen and for inviting me along.

I attended my first Missouri River Expo a couple weeks ago, and I had a great time! For those who have never been (which may not be many of you), the Expo runs for 3 days in September — Friday, Saturday and Sunday. While Saturday and Sunday are open to the public and are the busiest days, Friday is only open to elementary schools. Nearly a thousand 5th graders this year received a private sneak peek before the general public …

One of my favorite moments in the past few weeks was going Canada goose banding with the wildlife guys. We’re all used to seeing birds with bands on their legs, but actually seeing it done is an absolute rodeo! It was like herding cattle… except with geese and boats on the water. I couldn’t help but laugh. Goose banding is done during a certain time period of the year, when the geese lose their flight feathers during molting. Even without …

When it comes to Instagram, there are two camps: those who absolutely love it and those who hate it. A lot of hardcore photographers will grumble and gripe, criticizing the application and its users because it’s not “real photography.” And they’re right. Instagram is NOT photography. It requires very little technical know-how that real photographers who use real cameras spend years to perfect. Unless if you actually know how to work a real camera, I would advise Instagram users to …

I went to Fort Atkinson yesterday for a Press Day Event. In addition to meeting great people from the media, I also had the pleasure of bumping into Greg Wagner. Here are some photos of Greg’s brief stint as an 1820s infantryman. Always a pleasure, Greg. 🙂 Here are some more photos from the Press Day event. We had a great turn out. Professionals from the press and the community attended. Here’s Julie Ashton from the Friends of Fort Atkinson …

I’ve never caught a walleye. I’ve never even eaten one. But I’ve sure learned a lot about them in the last month… from setting out lines, to egg collection, hatching, treating, marking and stocking. They’re such amazing, resilient little fish. I kind of feel like a proud mamma– even though the guys did all the work. Shout out to the guys at the Calamus Fish Hatchery. I think you are all the bee’s knees. Thanks for putting up with me.  …

Niobrara State Park is one of my favorite places to visit up in this part of the state. Situated on at the confluence of the Missouri and Niobrara Rivers, the landscape in this region is constantly changing– so much that the town of Niobrara has had to relocate twice. Between Nebraska and South Dakota, there is the river and the floodplain, so open, wide and saturated with water. Its marshes holds some of the best water-fowling opportunities in the state. …

Looking back on the last few weeks, I can hardly believe all that I’ve experienced… seeing pronghorn antelope for the first time, shooting my first snow goose, shooting my first pheasant and quail, shooting a Civil War cannon(!), holding a pallid sturgeon for the first time and getting to spawn walleye! Here I am with my first snow goose, thanks to Scott Wessel who took me out hunting. To keep warm, I like to wear my warm bunny bomber hat …

Bringing Fort Hartsuff back to life, 67 Civil War re-enactors from Nebraska, Missouri and Iowa gathered this past weekend, April 13-14, to portray Fort McPherson in 1867.  In this semi-immersive event, re-enactors lived, ate and slept like 19th century Union soldiers and civilians to offer visitors an accurate representation of military life post-Civil War. Superintendent Jim Domeier of Fort Hartsuff reported approximately 530 visitors for the weekend— a great turnout despite the cold, wet weather. “I was very pleased with …

I know. You’re probably tired of reading posts about the cranes. But I saw them for the first time Sunday morning, so one more post won’t kill you… Prior to the experience, my knowledge of the sandhill cranes was limited to Michael Forsberg photos and people telling me that I simply had to see them. I had never even heard of them until I came to Nebraska, where these birds are considered magical and special– an annual marvel that arrive …